Why Joel Campbell Was Arsenal’s Most Surprising Player in 2015/16 Season

Back in August 2015, there were strong rumours that Joel Campbell might be on the verge of leaving Arsenal. According to Eren Sarigul of Turkish Football (h/t The Metro), Galatasaray were one of the clubs trying to prise him away from north London. As it was, he stayed at the club. And his subsequent impact on the 2015/16 campaign was one of the positive surprises of the season. 

By this stage, Campbell already had four different loan spells away from the club. There was a nagging feeling that if Arsene Wenger really had faith in him, he would not have sent him away to Villarreal for the second half of the 2014/15 season. 

Wenger has since said to James Riach of The Guardian that Campbell’s determined mentality convinced him to keep the Costa Rican at the club:

“I flat-refused to let him go because I saw something in him that gives you belief, because of his attitude. It is true he had players in front of him and you think: ‘Can you block a player like that?’ But he was four times out on loan.”

That may well have been a key factor. However, the news that Danny Welbeck’s knee problem was far worse than initially thought must also have been an influence on the manager’s decision. Campbell had to be kept on as cover.

He was …

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